It was me versus the greasy white lump at the bottom of the jar, and the greasy white lump was winning. Armed with only a spoon, I hacked away at the coconut oil, carving shreds off of its stubborn surface. If an intruder had broken into the house at that moment and grabbed me, I would have slid out of their grip like an eel.
Despite that, making your own skincare products has its perks, like comfort in your self-sufficiency, the knowledge that no evil things like sulfates or dimethicone have sneaked into the things you’re putting on your face, and the freedom to customize.
Grandmothers, read no further: Like I wrote about a few months ago, I’m making skincare products for my grandmothers — this time for Mother’s Day. Instead of hard lotion bars, I made “Key Lime” body cream, although this was a less original idea: I didn’t make up the recipe as I went along, but took it from elsewhere, the only difference being that I quadrupled the recipe.
Into our mixer went not only two whopping cups of hard-won coconut oil, but olive oil, aloe vera gel (which was extremely hard to find), and lemon and lime essential oils. Then I attached the wire whisk and set the mixer on its highest setting.
I took a moment to clean the kitchen, and when I returned to check on my concoction, it already looked different. Instead of being disparate lumps of this and that, it resembled whipped cream (the edible kind), with a slight greenish tinge. Fascinated, I pressed my face up close to the mixer, watching as the whisk beat air outward like a fan. When I had added the essential oils they had smelled like — well — lemon and lime essential oil, but they blended into a mild, pleasing scent that did remind me of Key lime pie.
According to the recipe, I was supposed to whip my body cream for three to seven minutes. I found about five to be enough. When the cream was suitably fluffy, I then had the challenge of manhandling it into the glass jars we had bought for the occasion. This proved somewhat catastrophic — I was greased almost up to my elbows — but it was worth it to know that I had made the contents of the six slippery glass jars sitting on the counter.
Now I am the proud creator of six glass jars of fluffy Key Lime body cream, five of which shall be given away around Mother’s Day. If you’d like to give body cream to your loved ones for a holiday, here is the recipe.
Key Lime Pie Body Cream
Please note: my mother stored this recipe away on her computer but does not remember where she originally got it from. We don’t know where she got it from, but please understand that we don’t own this recipe. Makes about 1 cup of cream.
1 cup coconut oil
1 T olive oil
2 T aloe vera gel
20 drops lime essential oil
20 drops lemon essential oil
Place all ingredients in a mixer, using a wire attachment. Don’t melt the coconut oil or it won’t whip properly. Any other kitchen tool, such as a blender, will not whip the mixture.
Turn the mixer on its highest setting for 3-7 minutes. When the cream is fluffy enough, store it in glass jars.
